Another Birtday...

I posted the message below one day before my birthday in 2009. It is as meaningful today as it was then so I’ve updated the dates and a couple of details for this year...

---

It was 17 months, 7 days ago (almost to the hour) when my doctor told me I had cancer. Not a day I’ll ever forget! A week later at the hospital, after surgery he changed it to really bad cancer (as if there were a really good cancer). My nurse told me to go off and become a miracle. Knowing it will take a miracle to survive was a little deflating.

A month later after another surgery at MD Anderson my doctor confirmed "really bad." They used words with lots of syllables like papillary, carcinoma and so on. They even scheduled me for another surgery that began with the word radical. Hmm...this is getting better?

All of the above occurred over a 6-week period. What a whirlwind!

One of my early prayers was “let me see Brittany graduate.” I was asking for two years. Seemed reasonable! Then I began to get greedy, asking for extra years to see the grandbabies grow up. They do need a grandpa!

As the days went by leading up to surgery I would not allow myself to think too far into the future because when I did a sense of disappointment and sadness set in. I had to be realistic…this was a complicated procedure that didn’t…well...you get the point!

Here I am one day before another birthday not caring too much about aging, looking forward to upcoming vacations and generally enjoying life. My immediate concern is ensuring I make enough margaritas for our gathering tonight. Adrianne, Alison and Brittany are all here, something that doesn’t happen often enough.

That’s the “one day at a time/live for the moment” thing I’ve become accustom to. Not a bad way to live!

So…Happy Birthday to Me!

Didn’t plan on making it this far but don’t plan on leaving too soon either! Hey, that sounds like a country song.